Why most of Congress won't do these things (especially Republicans)


- Allowing more young immigrants into the U.S. would mean standing against their president on his biggest issue.

- Allowing the government to use its huge bargaining power to negotiate lower drug prices would mean standing against big pharma (often campaign donors).

- Raising the cap on income subject to Social Security payroll taxes would mean telling the wealthy (often campaign donors) they will pay more.

So what were they supposed to do with the money? Stuff it in a mattress somewhere?


No. Keep it in a very carefully governed trust fund where the trustees, who would be at arms length from the government, are charged with ensuring the purpose and health of the trust is constantly maintained. That's not to say they couldn't decide to lend money to the government as long as they were sure they could recover it within a resonable period of time.

That's exactly what they do. It's invested in the only security that meets those criteria.

That's exactly what they do. It's invested in the only security that meets those criteria.


Which would be fine if the borrower ever had any intention of paying it back. While great for the rest of the world, the U.S. government is probably the worst investment they ever could have made. Let's put it this way, if the trust had invested in Canadian, English, French, whatever treasuries other than the U.S. and kept the trust fund out of the hands of the politicians would there be a concern right now?